A collection of my most favorite strawberry desserts! Strawberries can be grown year round in California, making them one of the berries that we tend to see most consistently on our grocer’s shelves (blueberries are up there as well!).
I love to use fresh strawberries in scones, cookies, buttercream, cakes and especially, overnight strawberry jam buns.
Scroll through this list to find some of your new favorites:
- Strawberry cardamon cake
- Chocolate cake with strawberry marshmallow frosting
- Strawberry chocolate sandwich cookies
- Fresh strawberry brownie recipe
- Overnight strawberry jam rolls with lemon glaze
- Lime cupcakes with fresh strawberry basil buttercream
- Strawberry cream scones
- Fresh strawberry scone cakes
6 Tips for Picking Fresh Strawberries
- Strawberries are delicious year round, but are at their peak during the warm, summer months. Your local farmer’s market (or your backyard) will have some of the best tasting strawberries during this time.
- Pick strawberries that are bright red and shiny, not dull. I prefer smaller berries as the sweetness is more concentrated (this holds true for grapes as well as other types of berries). The stems should look fresh and green, not brown and dried.
- Strawberries are on the ‘dirty dozen‘ list in regards to contamination so I prefer, when possible, to buy organic.
- If using berries in desserts where the strawberries stay whole or are halved, pick fruit that is unblemished. If using berries for jams (such as the overnight rolls), it’s ok for them to have some smaller blemishes.
- I like to store my strawberries at room temperature, on the counter, if it isn’t too humid out. If it’s humid, store them in the fridge. Ideally use within 24 hours of purchasing.
- Only wash your strawberries just prior to using!
1. Strawberry Cardamom Cake Recipe
First, on this list of summer dessert favorites, is this lightly adapted version of Marian Burros’s iconic New York Times’s Plum Torte recipe. What makes her recipe so fabulous is the simplicity of it as it comes together with minimal (read: barely) any effort. I added in some fresh strawberries in place of the plums, a touch of cardamom (but you could substitute cinnamon or nutmeg in its place or omit altogether) and I expanded on the instructions just a bit. This is one of those beautiful recipes that is begging for you to riff on it — so have fun!
2. Chocolate Cake With
Strawberry Marshmallow Frosting Recipe
One of my favorite recipes from one of my favorite baking ladies: Jessie Sheehan! This was one of those recipes that I saw her photo and immediately went and made it and asked her if I could share it on my blog, it’s that fabulous. The texture on this frosting is unreal. This cake is a classic, chocolate sheet cake topped with a fresh strawberry marshmallow frosting — can you even?!? There is simply no way that any list of favorite strawberry desserts could omit this gem.
Jessie has two fabulous cookbooks: The Vintage Baker and Icebox Cakes (she’s the queen of icebox cakes) — go check ’em out!
DH TIP:
If you run out of time and your fresh strawberries are going bad, make this strawberry quick jam that you can keep in the fridge and use for a week-ish or stash in the freezer, in an air-tight container for later use.
3. Strawberry Chocolate Sandwich Cookie Recipe
A classic, dark chocolate cookie with fresh strawberry cream in the middle and a drizzle of chocolate if you’re feeling fancy. A super fun baking project and DELICIOUS to eat!
4. Fresh Strawberry Brownie Recipe
Ooey, gooey brownies, fresh strawberries, a splash of balsamic for acidity — these brownies are hella delicious and beautiful! All you need is a 8 x 8-inch baking dish (here’s the one from the photos) and you’re good to go!
5. Overnight Strawberry Jam Rolls With Lemon Glaze
A super rich, delicious, overnight yeasted dough is smothered in a quick, fresh strawberry jam and then covered in a bright, lemony glaze — these are so good! Scroll to see recipe at the bottom of this post! You will love these!!!6.
6. GF Lime Cupcakes With Fresh Strawberry Basil Buttercream Recipe
Love futzing with recipes and making them gluten free! You would never know these cupcakes are gluten free, ever! The frosting is a super simple strawberry lime basil buttercream that will knock your socks off. Plus it’s an American buttercream, so no futzing with eggs to get this one done!
7. Strawberry Cream Scones Recipe
Strawberry scones are my JAM. When I first started DisplacedHousewife I was catering, private chef’ing, making scones on the weekends for Solvang Bakery and just generally hustling. After two years of that non-stop grind, I was finally able to focus solely on DisplacedHousewife. What a gift. But for several years, I would wake up long before dawn and churn out different seasonal scones. Flavors would change weekly based on the seasons and yes, strawberry scones were a huge summer hit. My scones are always tender and moist, never dry and dense. Enjoy!!
DH TIP
Another tip for fresh strawberries that are about to go bad is to freeze them in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Once frozen transfer to an air-tight container and use them for smoothies. If the strawberries are large, consider halving them!
8. Fresh Strawberry Scone Cakes Recipe
Strawberry Scone Cakes are my take on Strawberry Short Cakes…nothing to complicated but extremely delicious! Lots of orange blossom whipped cream, fresh macerated strawberries and orange sugar sprinkled over the tops of the scones pre-bake for the most incredible crunch. These are great for breakfast, brunch, dessert or anytime you’re looking for the perfect vehicle for fresh strawberries!
8 Fresh Strawberry Desserts: Strawberry Jam Rolls
Ingredients
For the Dough
- 1 cup (240 g) buttermilk, milk or water, (warmed to the touch but not burn-your-finger hot)
- 2 1/4 teaspoons (5 g) instant or active dry yeast
- 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 4 cups (540 g) all-purpose flour, plus additional flour for dusting your surfaces (use as little extra flour as possible)
- 8 tablespoons (113 g or 4 oz) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 3 large egg yolks (room temperature)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (9 g) sea salt
- 1 teaspoon (2 g) ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon (5 g) neutral oil such as sunflower seed oil
For the Quick Jam
- 1 pint (12 ounces or 340 g) fresh strawberries (cleaned and halved)
- 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon each zest + juice about 1 lemon
For the Filling
- (6 ounces or 170 g) quick strawberry jam recipe above
- 1/2 pint fresh strawberries (cleaned + small dice)
- 1 cup (220 g) light or dark brown sugar packed
- 2 teaspoons (4 g) ground cinnamon
For the Icing
- 3 cups (360 g) confectioners' sugar (sifted)
- 1/4 cup (60 g) crème fraîche
- 2 or more tablespoons of fresh lemon juice to thin
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
Instructions
For the Dough
- n an electric stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, mix the buttermilk (or milk or water) and yeast and let sit for 15 minutes. Then add in the flour, melted butter, egg yolks, sugar, sea salt and cinnamon and knead on medium-high for about 15 minutes or until the dough ball becomes smooth. Swirl 1 tablespoon of oil around a large bowl. Set the dough inside, turning to coat completely with the oil. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and set in the fridge for at least 12 hours.
For the Quick Jam
- To make the strawberry jam, add the strawberries, 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon each lemon juice and zest to a medium-size saucepan. Bring to a boil, mashing the berries with the tip of a wooden spoon. Continue to boil for 10-15 minutes minutes or until when you drag a spoon across the bottom of the pan it leaves a track. Let the jam cool a bit and then transfer to a lidded container and stash in the fridge until ready to assemble and bake your jam buns.
To Assemble
- When ready to assemble take the dough out of the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for about 45 minutes. Then turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and shape it into a 18X12-inch rectangle (46X30-cm). You may or may not need a rolling pin to nudge it into shape. Make sure the corners are as close to 90-degree angles as possible (this will make it easy to roll the buns up). Smear the strawberry jam over the top, leaving about 1/2 half-inch clean along the longer edges. Sprinkle with 1 cup (220 g) brown sugar, 2 teaspoons of cinnamon and then finish with the remaining 1/2 pint fresh cut strawberries. Starting with the long edge farthest from you, start rolling the dough into a log towards you. When you get to the end, pinch the dough together to form a seam and roll the seam side underneath. Using a very sharp knife (I like a serrated for this) cut 10 buns about 1 1/2-inch wide each.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Butter or spray non-stick on your baking dish and line with parchment paper; I like to use several large baking dishes so they have lots of room to grow and rise (see note above about baking vessel options). Place the jam buns cut-side up in the baking dishes, allowing several inches in between buns for rising. Place a skillet on the bottom rack of the oven, put the dishes with the jam buns on the top rack of the turned-off oven and pour the boiling water in the skillet on the bottom rack. Quickly shut the door and let the dough rise for about 30 minutes or until double in size. Take the jam buns and the skillet out of the oven. Preheat your oven to 350 F (177 C) and bake the buns in the middle of the oven for 20-25 minutes or until lightly bronzed and an internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F.
For the Glaze
- While the jam buns cool, whisk together the powdered sugar, crème fraîche and lemon juice + zest. You want the glaze to be thick enough to stay on top of the buns, but thin enough to drip down the sides. Spoon the glaze over the tops of the buns and serve! Jam buns are best the day they are made but I’ve never turned one down that was stored in an airtight container overnight.
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